The Big Jungle Mix Up by Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui

The Big Jungle Mix Up by Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui
Buy The Big Jungle Mix Up by Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Kerry King
Summary: Little Bear's dad tries to teach him all the jungle animals he ought to know, but the problem is they are a little mixed up! What would happen if a monkey was mixed up with a parrot? Would it have feathers? Would you teach it to speak? What would happen if a leopard was mixed up with a crocodile? Would it have green scales and a mean smile? An utterly charming and brightly illustrated pre-schoolers tale.
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 26	Date: February 2012
Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
ISBN: 978-1444903041
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Big Bear is teaching little bear all about the animals in the jungle as they are out walking one day. But Big Bear keeps mixing them up and little bear has to keep putting him straight:

We might find a monkey, with feathers and beak, pea-green, carrot orange, we'll teach it to speak…

You've got it mixed up! As orange as a carrot? A beak that can speak? Then it must be a… *open flap* PARROT!

Any kind of book with flaps, in our house, is an instant hit and this gorgeously illustrated rhyming story is getting some mileage already. The appeal of the mixed up animals – some of which are delightfully and hilariously silly – is almost contagious… the enthusiasm with which my 4 year old sat, eagerly awaiting the next funny combination was fantastic and the stunning citrus and bold colours of the illustrations are so jolly and eye-pleasing that we simply love reading this book together.

It's such an uncomplicated idea really, like the picture books when I was a kid that were stable door so that you could give a camel a pair of legs like a flamingo, or make a penguin have a horses bottom… I'm thrilled to see something as vibrant, innocent and fun as this book in my child's library because it encourages her to use her imagination and there is nothing more satisfying for a parent than to take part in mental playtime with their little one.

I heartily recommend The Big Jungle Mix-Up; it's not a long read by any stretch and I would suggest it's probably not for bedtime reading because of the luscious and vivacious drawings (very mentally stimulating) but it's perfect for a quiet five minutes and if you partner it with The Big Animal Mix-Up by Gareth Edwards from the same author, you can mix up your every day creatures with your jungle mongrels and maybe make up some of your own for fun!

For further reading and as suggested above, The Big Animal Mix-Up by Gareth Edwards is a great place to start. If flaps are your thing, like they are in our house, then maybe you will find Don't Invite Dinosaurs To Dinner by Neil Griffiths and Peggy Collins as much fun as we did.

Finally a big thank you to the ladies and gents at Hodder for sending this copy to Bookbag for review.

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